F-Zero

It is now the year 2560, and due to the human race's countless encounters with alien life forms throughout the Universe, Earth's social framework has expanded to cosmic proportions. Now, trade, technology transfer and cultural interchange are carried out on an interplanetary basis.

The multibillionaires who earned their enormous wealth through intergalactic trade, while satisfied with their rich lifestyles, also yearned for new entertainment to stimulate their lazy lives. Their wishes were met by a call for a new project based upon a seemingly simple premise--"Why not hold, on a galactic scale, some competition like the F-1 races once held on Earth centuries ago?"

At once, everyone jumped at this idea. Rich merchants from cities in the clouds or asteroids with almost uninhabitable environments invested their wealth in the construction of racing circuits.

These racing circuits were located as high up as 300 feet above ground and held in place by anti-gravitational guide beams on both sides of the course. The racing machines developed for these tracks used the very latest in super-magnetic technology and were designed to travel without wheels, hovering one foot above the course track.

When the first Grand Prix race was held, people were angered at the brutality of the competition. The organizers had, during construction, placed various obstacles and traps along the raceway. But as time passed, and people grew used to these dangers, they soon demanded even more excitement in the race. In time, winning this race meant earning the highest honor that could be bestowed on anyone in the Universe.